Safety clutch or coupling.



W. R. WINTER.

SAFETY CLUTCH 0R GOUPUNG.

APPLICATION man we. 15, 1913.

A 195 1 Paton J. 9, $331 (gal/"W164 a. 77" A I @w "r rrvnvn w an t r f t lift it it ii l th "XLLZAM R. WINTER, OF BERLIN, GERMANY, ASSIGNOR 1'0 PGT'I'ER Alt-ID JQHNSTON MACHINE GGMPANY, F IPAVTTUCKET, RHODE ISLAND. 1

sens'rr CLUTCHTQB, countries.

, Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jon. h, it fl '7,

Application filed December 15, L913. Serial No. 806,794.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, l'VILLIAM R. 'lVIN'rnn, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Berlin, Germany, have invented 21 certain new and uslul Improvement in Safety Clutches or Couplings, and do hereby declarethat the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to safety devices for the purpose of preventing breakage or in.- jury to machines, such-as the stripping of gears when some obstruction occurs, end the ()lf' no which will positively connect the conditions, but which are certain to yield when the exigency arises and which will he of simple construction, and to these ends my inve' uconsistsin the safety device constructed substantially as hereinafter specifled and claimed in the accompanying drowihgs-Figure l longitudinal section through the main shaft of a machine turret lathe, to trute an embodiment of my invention uted to that particular use; Fig. 2 is o mentery section on. the line 22 of o the drawings, Figs. 1 and the main driving shaft of urret lathe upon which is 11 that forms a bearing for 12. Loose upon the shaft f) 1.4, it) (c on outer-not huh by M is a circular plate or iolste being confined. against the he pulley huh and the outer eve, by a collar 16, which is projects beyond the outer side of the e15. Secured to the outer pro- ,he shaft by suitable keys,

' surrounding the hub of the spring 18, one end of which outer face ofthe disk 17 and cl. 0;? he pic to 15, while the other end of the i hears er end of the shaft 10, the lat- .outer end a reduced, threaded 26 over F the disk 19 is upped, and the dist: .lt clamped between i. he shaft. lh

- 1 r. tor new n5; is t,

cro'hly the disk 19 l that forms 5 a housing or inclosu 3 for the spr ng 18. it

of my invention is to provide a safety "ing and driven members under normal ired to the outer face of the reduced portion of the shaft yieldingly toward the outer.

inst n disk 19 which is se-- ovill be seen that the disk 17 is slidaloly mounted upon the shaft 10 and it is yield ingly pressed toward the circularplate by the action of the spring 18, according to the strength of the latter. The circular plate 15 and disk 17 constitute cooperating members of m clutch by which the pulley and shaft are rotatably connected together, and a separable driving connection is formed between the plate 15 and the disk 17, which, under normal conditions in the operation of the machine clutches the pulley to the shaft, but which ,under conditions which throw unusual load upon the driving shaft, such for example as some obstruction in the machine, will allow the disconnection of the pulley and driving shaft so that while the rotation of the pulley will continue it will not transmit any power to the driving shaft. Such separable connections are formed of one or more blocks, preferably in the form of balls 23, each of which is adapted to be seated in it depression or cavity 24 in the outer face of the circular plate 15, and the cavity or depression in the opposite face of the disk 17, the ball when seated in opposing cavities 24- and 25 in the respective places acting to clutch the two together so that rotationof the circular plate 15 imported by the pulley will be i inperted to the disk 17 and thereby to the shaft 10.

The depth of the cavity 24- in the circular plate is is less than that of the cavity 25 in the disk 17, so that there is a greater portion of the block or hell seated in the disk 1'! than inthe circular plots As it result ofithis arrangement, when. stoppage of the disk 1'? occurs, due to an obstruction, Whilethe rotation of the plate 15 continues, the ball will be disengaged from the cavity 24411 the plotetlo, this disengagement being possible by reason of the yielding of the spring 18. In theplote 15 is a slot 26, which by the rotation of the plate after the ball is disengaged therefrom, comes opposite the holl'23 and the ball is ejected through it by the action of a spring" 27 seated in on openin in the disk 17, the bull being retained, after being ejected through the slot, by an annular flange or rim 28 on the plate 15. it will thus be seen that the balls are removed from position between the opposing faces of the plate 15 and the disk 17 after an unclutchingr operation hus occurred so that it is impossible for any accidental reengegeroent to take place and the knocking or striking the balls and the corners of the cavities the members15 and 17 is obviated. "When the obstruction to the running of the machine is removed the two members 15 and 17 are again clutched together by the restoration of the balls to a position between the members 15 and 17 and in-the cavities thereof, this operation involving merely the rem'oval or the disk 19 and the member 1? from the shaft in order to enable the balls to be taken out of the chamber in the plate 15 in which they were trapped and then the replacement of the parts.

It will be seen that no alteration of the adjustment of the parts can be made by a workman or attendant which will impair the efiicient action of my safety device, and hence, it is certain to act to disengage the driving and driven members when a load is thrown upon the pulley, due to the stoppage of the driving shaft and in of the power of the spring, and yet under normal conditions the connection between the driving and the driven members, is a positive one. The collar 16 serves as a stop to prevent the disk 17 when unclutched coming in contact with the face of the driving member 15, and thus friction is avoided since the collar 16 does not revolve with the driving member.

While in both forms of my invention I show balls 'as the form of the coupling element between the driving and driven members of my safety clutch and in each case show three balls, yet, as i have already indicated the coupling member need not always be in the form of balls, and the number may be varied. It is also to be understood that I do not restrict the employment of my safety clutch, or coupling" to use in any particular machine, for it may be employed wherever there are driving and machine, or mechanism,

driven members and it is desired to have the driving member unclutohed from. the driven member when in the operation of the an excess load is thrown on the driving member.

Having thus described my invention what I claim is-- 1. The combination-oi a shaft, a driving clutch member loose on the shaft, a driven clutch-member rotatably andslidably con-- nected with the shaft, said members being placed side by their opposing faces, a ball adapted to be seated in said cavities, the cavity in one member being deeper than in the other, and a spring that yieldingly presses the sliding member toward the driven clutch member, the ball being automatically displaceable from the cavity in the driven member,

and a space being provided into which said hall is moved when displaced, whereby antomatic reengagement of the ball with. opposing cavities is prevented.

2. The combination of driving and driven. members having opposing faces that contain cavities, an automatically displaceable coupling device in the form of a loose body adapted to be seated in opposing cavities, and one of said members having at one side of the cavity therein an opening, and pocket to which said opening leads, and means for yieldingly holding said device seated in opposing cavities, said device when displaced from said cavities being adapted to pass through said opening into said pocket;

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand.

NILLIAlid it. WXNTEH.

Witnesses CHAS. J. WiLLmMsoN, E. H. MoLnci-imn.

side and having cavities 111 

